Institutions of One · By RN Collins
One person.
An entire institution.
Nine editions about the systems hidden inside independent creative work, and the choices that determine who can use, change, credit and carry that work forward. Written for independent creators, freelancers and small studios.Editions 001 to 004 are read on the main site, which holds the cited copy of every edition. Editions 005 to 009 are here.Editions 001 to 009
All nine editions, in order.
- 001Read on the main site (opens in a new tab)
When Does One Person Become an Institution? (opens on the main site in a new tab)
What does a person have to build, carry, and control before their work begins to function like an institution?
- 002Read on the main site (opens in a new tab)
Your Career Has a Supply Chain (opens on the main site in a new tab)
Dependence is unavoidable. The danger is a dependency you cannot see, replace, negotiate with, or survive without.
- 003Read on the main site (opens in a new tab)
Your Archive Is Not a Backup (opens on the main site in a new tab)
An export can preserve the objects you made while losing the operating memory that made them useful.
- 004Read on the main site (opens in a new tab)
The Exit Is Part of the Architecture (opens on the main site in a new tab)
The right to download the parts is not the same as a path for the work to continue somewhere else.
- 005Read edition →
The $2,000 Video
A creator deal is usually several decisions wearing one price tag
- 006Read edition →
The Person Inside the Asset
A finished post can contain a copyrighted work, a performance, an identity, and a future edit.
- 007Read edition →
The Asset’s Afterlife
The file did not change. Its commercial life did.
- 008Read edition →
The Smallest Institution in the Campaign
One post can contain an entire organization.
- 009Read edition →
All Media, Now Known or Hereafter Devised
One clause in a contract can decide who controls tomorrow’s use of today’s video
How it fits together
Three steps, in order.
- 1
Read an edition
Nine essays, 001 to 009. Read them in order, or start with the one that matches your question.
- 2
Watch it as slides
Editions 005 to 009 each have visual stories: short carousels that make the argument at a glance. They appear on their release days. Browse the visual stories.
- 3
Check the sources
Every edition links to its sources, and the Source Desk lists the photographs, documents and publishers behind the series. Open the Source Desk.
About the author
RN Collins
RN Collins is a storytelling strategist, content and experiential producer, resident neuroscientist and design technologist.
Anatomist and medical educator. M.S. Anatomy & Neurobiology, Boston University.
Two sites, one series
Where to find the rest.
This site holds Editions 005 to 009, the visual stories, the interactive tools and the Source Desk. The main site holds the numbered, cited copy of every edition and the career case records.